WILLIAMSBURG - As a child growing up in the harsh winters of Fargo, N.D., Jacob Weiler relished the days when the snowplows rumbled down his street near Fargo South High School. When the truck's ice-scraper finished rooting up the frozen top layer of ice and grit, Weiler raced out to the road to kick his soccer ball against the curb, endlessly honing his first touch. "It would pop up and force me to be clean with my touches," Weiler said. "Soccer's a self-taught game for me. I learned a lot out there.

The Daily Press scopes out news, notes and fun stuff about sports: Reality has apparently taken a holiday at Nebraska, where cheerleaders are up in arms because they are down on the ground and have been told to stay that way. No more high-flying back flips, tumbling or pyramids. No more tossing one cheerleader to another or doing circus acrobat stunts without a net. It can be too expensive, which Nebraska learned last year when it agreed to pay Tracy Jensen $2.1 million after she broke her neck in 1996 practicing a handspring.

NORFOLK - There are games, Duke coach Joanne P. McCallie said, that test a team's resolve. Offense goes missing. Shots don't fall. Everything is a grind. Everyone must contribute. Defense and effort carried the Blue Devils to within one win of the Final Four, as they outlasted Nebraska 53-45 in an offense-challenged NCAA tournament Norfolk Region semifinal Sunday at the Constant Center. "A lot of grit, a lot of defense," McCallie said. "Sometimes, the offense isn't as smooth, and defense and rebounding really has to take charge of what you do as a team, and I think at this time of year, in particular, as teams are more physical and talented, that sometimes shows up. " Second-seeded Duke (33-2)

Eric Stokes had a head start on some of his Nebraska teammates when preparations began for the New Year's Eve Orange Bowl. Not only had he seen Virginia Tech play before, he rooted for them. Said occurrence happened a year ago, when the Hokies defeated Texas, 28-10, in the Sugar Bowl. Stokes watched the game on television and cheered because he has two favorite college teams - Nebraska and whoever is playing Texas. So when the Cornhuskers got down to the Virginia Tech crash course, Stokes already knew about quarterback Jim Druckenmiller, the mammoth offensive line, and the no-huddle offense.

Nebraska is not a happenin' place. Bruce Springsteen named a mediocre album after the state, and then-Gov. Bob Kerrey had the paparazzi abuzz when he shacked up in the statehouse with Debra Winger. Other than that ... well, let's just say you'd better know the difference between a "Sam" and "Mike" linebacker. Or, as Warren Swain said: "The whole state revolves around University of Nebraska football." Trust Swain on this. As the radio voice of the Cornhuskers, as the person entrusted to make every man, woman and child in the state feel as if they're in the seats at Memorial Stadium shivering under a Big Red blanket, he has learned that "fan" is a derivative of "fanatic."

A friend and I were out fishing one day, trading stories and jokes. What, he asked, does the "N" on Nebraska's football helmet stand for? Dunno. "Knowledge," he replied. It also stands for national champion, No. 1 and nolo contendere, all furrows in the Cornhuskers' field as they break ground for the 1996 college football season. The easy thing, that which some would call the best thing, is to erase the tribulations of the 1995 season and start with a clean slate.

Monday's question: Is Nebraska the best team in college football? YES: 40 Nebraska is No. 1, West Virginia No. 2. ... Nebraska has proven itself over the years to be right up there in the top 10. In the Orange Bowl, Florida just has the home team advantage. ... Of course Nebraska should be No. 1, West Virginia No. 2. Florida State is a loser. ... The Midwest always produces the best college teams. ... Nebraska is the best team because they're a hard team. They don't play for money, they play to win. ... They're one of the finest schools ethically and academically and so is Ohio State.

Only a seismic computer shift stands between Virginia Tech and a berth in the national championship game. The unbeaten Hokies (11-0) distanced themselves from Nebraska, their closest pursuer, in the weekly Bowl Championship Series standings released Monday. Tech is a solid No. 2 in the BCS standings and a prohibitive favorite for a spot opposite Florida State in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 4. The Hokies more than doubled last week's edge over Nebraska in the current standings, from 0.63 points to 1.54 points.

Danielle Adams scored 20 of her 22 points in the second half as 11th-ranked Texas A&M (24-7) handed No. 3 Nebraska (30-1) its first loss with an 80-70 upset in a semifinal of the Big 12 tournament in Kansas City, Mo., on Saturday. Nebraska's leading scorer, Kelsey Griffin, was saddled by foul trouble and scored only 15 points in the loss. Other Big 12 semifinalDanielle Robinson (19 points) and Amanda Thompson (17) hit big free throws in the final seconds, lifting No.

All the convincing Virginia Tech offensive coordinator Bryan Stinespring needed that his starting quarterback had finally come of age came in September during a 90-second span. Tyrod Taylor has spent the last 3 1/2 months of his junior season proving Stinespring right. "I think 90 seconds against Nebraska set the stage for the rest of the season for Tyrod," Stinespring said. The 90 seconds that made all the difference for Stinespring were the final stages of Tech's 16-15 win against the Cornhuskers, when Taylor found Danny Coale for an 81-yard completion and capped off a game-winning drive with a scrambling, frantic, miracle 11-yard touchdown rocket to Dyrell Roberts.

Just getting to enroll at the University of Nebraska could be considered something of a behemoth feat for a guy who risked his life in two military tours of duty in Iraq. Earning a spot on the Cornhuskers' football roster was almost unimaginable. Not for Tyrone Fahie. Since graduating from Ocean Lakes High in Virginia Beach in 2000, there haven't been many challenges set in Fahie's way that he hasn't overcome. One of the primary responsibilities listed under the United States Navy's Code of Ethics is to "give an honest effort in the performance of your duties."

Halfway across the country, Nicole Cunningham, 18, of Yorktown is playing immediately for an NCAA Division II soccer team. Cunningham, a 5-foot-7 freshman midfielder at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, has gotten in four of six games for the Mavericks (3-3, 2-0 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association), though she is scoreless so far. UNO is on a two-match winning streak, and two of its losses were to nationally ranked teams: 3-1 to No. 3 Metro State in Denver and 4-0 to No. 23 St. Edward's in Kirksville, Mo. Cunningham began high school in Nebraska, starting every game for Papillion-LaVista in ninth grade, before moving to York County.

Play of the game On third-and-4 from the Nebraska 37 late in the fourth quarter, Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor scrambled to his right for a 2-yard gain. But Ndamukong Suh was flagged for a late hit, giving Tech a first down at the 20 and prolonging the drive the produced the eventual winning touchdown. Player of the game Taylor had 258 yards total offense, 171 passing and 87 rushing, in his finest all-around effort since last season against Florida State, when he threw for 204 and ran for 92. But that game was at Lane Stadium.

Just when Virginia Tech looked like it was about to be in serious trouble Saturday night, a familiar scenario helped the Hokies seal a win for the third consecutive game. Tech defeated Nebraska 35-30 with a strong performance in all three facets, and a little help from some late defensive penalties by Nebraska. Quarterback Tyrod Taylor led Tech's offense, which finished with a season-best 377 yards, including 206 rushing. Taylor, a Hampton High graduate, was 9-of-15 passing for 171 yards.

Play of the game On third-and-4 from the Nebraska 37 late in the fourth quarter, Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor scrambled to his right for a 2-yard gain. But Ndamukong Suh was flagged for a late hit, giving Tech a first down at the 20 and prolonging the drive the produced the eventual winning touchdown. Player of the game Taylor had 258 yards total offense, 171 passing and 87 rushing, in his finest all-around effort since last season against Florida State, when he threw for 204 and ran for 92. But that game was at Lane Stadium.

The football programs at Virginia Tech and Virginia sure are keeping fast postseason company these days. Nebraska and Miami this year - in the same stadium, no less. Texas and Georgia last year. National championships, Heisman and Outland trophies, All-Americans: Those programs have it all. Can Tech and Virginia rise to that level? Should they even try? What are the consequences of trying? Difficult issues, all. But with Virginia facing Miami in tonight's Carquest Bowl, and Tech meeting Nebraska in Tuesday's Orange Bowl, the issues deserve our attention.

In this conservative state, debates avoid the familiar talk of life and choice, but focus on legal inflexibility and the right to motherhood. In the fight to preserve the toughest abortion ban in the United States, the talk is not of a fetus' right to life. It's of a woman's right to motherhood. Anti-abortion activists here deliberately avoid the familiar slogans of their movement. Instead, campaign manager Leslee Unruh uses what she calls a feminist approach, arguing that legalized abortion must be stopped for exploiting women.

The Cornhuskers are replacing Wisconsin on the Hokies' schedule in 2008 and 2009. Virginia Tech and Nebraska have agreed to a home-and-home football series in 2008 and '09, the teams' first meeting since the 1996 Orange Bowl. The Cornhuskers replace Wisconsin on the Hokies' schedule, and those schools hope to play in later years, Tech athletic director Jim Weaver said in a statement. "Anytime you can play one of the great programs in the country it's good for your fans and good for your program," Hokies coach Frank Beamer said.